******************
A SIMPLE REQUEST
******************
Many of our files are unique and/or copyrighted by The Center For
World Indigenous Studies and The Fourth World Documentation
Project. All FWDP files may be reproduced for electronic
transfer or posting on computer networks and bulletin boards
provided that:
1. All text remains unaltered.
2. No profit is made from such transfer.
3. Full credit is given to the author(s) and the Fourth World
Documentation Project.
4. This file is included in the archive if being used as a
file on a BBS, FTP site or other file archive.
Thank you for your cooperation.
John Burrows
Director,
Fourth World Documentation Project
()-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=()
||///////////////////////////////////||
||=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-||
|| ||
|| The Fourth World Documentation Project runs entirely on grants ||
|| and private donations. If you find this information service ||
|| useful to you in any way, please consider making a donation to ||
|| help keep it running. CWIS is a non-profit [U.S. 501(c)(3)] ||
|| organization. All donations are completely tax deductible. ||
|| Donations may be made to: ||
|| ||
|| The Center For World Indigenous Studies ||
|| c/o The Fourth World Documentation Project ||
|| P.O. Box 2574 ||
|| Olympia, Washington USA ||
|| 98507-2574 ||
|| Thank You, ||
|| CWIS Staff ||
|| ||
||=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-||
||///////////////////////////////////||
()=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-()
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
:: This file has been created under the loving care of ::
:: -= THE FOURTH WORLD DOCUMENTATION PROJECT =- ::
:: A service provided by ::
:: The Center For World Indigenous Studies ::
:: ::
:: John H. Burrows jburrows@halcyon.com ::
:: C.W.I.S. ::
:: P.O. Box 2574 Fido Net 1:352/333 ::
:: Olympia, WA 206-786-9629 ::
:: 98507-2574 USA The Quarto Mundista BBS ::
:::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
DOCUMENT: ATNI8121.TXT
A F F I L I A T E D T R I B E S O F
N O R T H W E S T I N D I A N S
RESOLUTION 81-21
SAGEBRUSH REBELLION BILL,
HB 2982 OREGON STATE LEGISLATURE
WHEREAS: a "Sagebrush Rebellion" bill, HB 2982, has been
introduced in the Oregon State legislature, the Columbia
River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission presents the following:
This proposed legislation seeks the transfer of
unappropriated public lands, owned and administered
by the United States, to the State of Oregon. If
enacted, the legislation would further the attempts
of certain other western states to accomplish a
nationwide transfer of federal lands into state
ownership.
This transfer would gravely affect the lives and
fortunes of the Columbia River Treaty Tribes -- the
Nez Perce of Idaho, Confederated Tribes of the
Umatilla Reservation, Confederated Tribes of the
Warm Springs Reservation of Oregon, and
Confederated Tribes and Bands of the Yakima Indian
Nation -- member tribes of the Columbia River Inter-
Tribal Fish Commission. The Commission therefore
opposes HB 2982.
The Columbia River Treaty Tribes reserved certain
rights in treaties by which vast amounts of land in
the Columbia River Basin were ceded to the United
States. The Tribes reserved the right of taking fish
at all usual and accustomed stations, as well as
the right to hunt, gather roots and berries, and
pasture stock on the unappropriated public lands.
The Tribes exercise these treaty rights on natural
forests, public domain lands, and other lands owned
by the people of this nation and administered by the
federal government.
Federal land management agencies owe a trust duty to
the tribes and can be held to the highest fiduciary
standards in the administration of public lands.
This trust responsibility is uniquely federal.
States have no comparable obligations, and their
powers and potential actions as trustees are at best
uncertain. A clearly defined and enforceable trust
responsibility, to Indians and to the land and
resources they share with all other United States
citizens, is vital to the future of the Columbia
River Treaty Tribes.
Public lands are administered under federal statutes
that direct management for many public uses and that
mandate resource conservation, including protection
of fish and wildlife and their habitat. Other
statutes require that federal agencies take
environmental and social costs into account in
making resource decisions. And still other federal
laws give citizens the opportunity to participate in
the decision-making process.
The state of Oregon does not have equivalent laws,
and thus the framework for public land management in
the public interest is wholly lacking. Further,
proper administration of public lands demands large
expenditures of money. Should the proposed transfer
of federal lands to the states become a reality,
Oregon would be burdened with the cost of greatly
expanded state agencies at a time when the state
faces a financial crisis. Oregon's status as a
trustee, however uncertain, would also entail
significant immediate and long-term costs.
Another important issue is involved in transferring
public lands to the states: These lands are now
accessible to everyone, and the resources upon them
benefit all citizens, including the Columbia River
Treaty Tribes who depend upon them for livelihood
and for perpetuation of their culture. History has
shown that if federal lands go into state ownership,
there is great danger that these lands will
thereafter be conveyed to private interests. Of
nearly seven million acres that the United States
granted to Oregon when it became a state, over six
million are now privately owned. What once were
public lands and resources are now unavailable to
the public.
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED: that for all the above reasons the
Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians strongly urge the
Oregon legislature to reject any attempt to transfer public
lands to the state. This resolution expresses the certainty
that defeat of HB 2982 will be in the best interests of the
people of Oregon and of the nation.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED: that the Affiliated Tribes of
Northwest Indians urge the Oregon State Legislature to
defeat HB 3185, a bill equivalent to HB 2982 except that the
national forest lands are exempted from transfer to the
state, and to defeat HB 2987, accessory legislation to HB
2982 that would appoint a study commission to research the
public land transfer.
CERTIFICATION
The foregoing resolution has been adopted at the special
meeting of the Executive Council of the Affiliated Tribes of
Northwest Indians May 26, 1981 at the Sheraton Hotel,
Spokane, Washington.
_________________________________ ______________________
Connie Skanen, Executive Director Russell Jim, President
-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
To have a current Center For World Indigenous Studies Publication
Catalogue sent to you via e-mail, send a request to
jburrows@halcyon.com
FTP ftp.halcyon.com /pub/FWDP/CWIS
Center For World Indigenous Studies
P.O. Box 2574
Olympia, WA U.S.A.
98507-2574
BBS: 206-786-9629
FAX: 206-956-1087
OCR Provided by Caere Corporation's OmniPage Professional